The Worm Turns (1937)

May 11, 2026

by Linda Kay

Directed by: Ben Sharpsteen

Synopsis: Mickey Mouse dons his mad scientist persona to create a liquid which brings instant bravado to anyone squirted with the substance, then proceeds to try it out on a variety of animals.

Cartoon Cat: After using the formula on a fly which beats the crap out of a spider, Mickey turns his attention to a mouse being chased by a black and white cat.

The Worm Turns - Mickey Mouse looking at black and white cartoon cat chasing mouse
The Worm Turns - black and white cartoon cat chasing mouse

The cat is playing with the mouse, teasing and tormenting the rodent.

The Worm Turns - black and white cartoon cat chasing mouse
The Worm Turns - black and white cartoon cat chasing mouse
The Worm Turns - black and white cartoon cat chasing mouse
The Worm Turns - black and white cartoon cat chasing mouse

Mickey sprays the mouse and the meek creature suddenly turns ferocious, chasing down the cat and grabbing the kitty’s whiskers, throwing him over like a calf at a rodeo before tossing him out the window.

The Worm Turns - black and white cartoon cat looking shocked
The Worm Turns - black and white cartoon cat having whiskers grabbed by mouse
The Worm Turns - black and white cartoon cat being chased by mouse

The cat lands on Pluto’s dish and splashes milk all over him. Pluto becomes enraged and chases the cat through a tiny hole in a shed.

The Worm Turns - black and white cartoon cat looking shocked after spilling milk on dog Pluto
The Worm Turns - black and white cartoon cat squeezing through tiny hole in shed

As Pluto digs his way into the shed, shaking the whole structure, the cat cowers as his lives leave his body.

The Worm Turns - black and white cartoon cat cowering as his lives leave his body

Mickey sprays the cat’s last life which then encourages all the others to return.

The Worm Turns - black and white cartoon cat cowering as his ninth life is sprayed
The Worm Turns - black and white cartoon cat looking shocked
The Worm Turns - eight lives of black and white cartoon cat looking down from shed

The cat chases after Pluto, bumping and yowling at the hapless pooch until Pluto finally escapes.

The Worm Turns - black and white cartoon cat yowling at Pluto
The Worm Turns - black and white cartoon cat chasing Pluto
The Worm Turns - black and white cartoon cat yowling at Pluto

Pluto is then chased by dog catcher Pete who is also technically a cat.

The Worm Turns - dog catcher Pete catching Pluto

Mickey ends up spraying Pluto and now the pooch goes after Pete, chasing him away.

The Worm Turns - dog catcher Pete looking scared

Final Mewsings: As a mouse you would think that Mickey would know it’s unethical to experiment on animals!

Many thanks to Laura MacGregor for letting us know about the cat in this short film.

Relevant Links:

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